After a protracted battle that lasted seven years and resulted in what can best be described as a dull stalemate, a new act in the Console War has finally begun with the release of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The last few months, with the slow, dribbled release of information from Microsoft and Sony, and dramatic revelations from insider leaks and developers, have seen some of the most heated arguments in the history of technology. These discussions are occurring for a good reason, though: The hardware, software, commercial, and ideological decisions that have been made during the development of these consoles will affect the face of gaming, and thus personal computing, for the next decade.

It’s not just hardcore gamers who care about the Console War. Over the last six months, as I’ve written about every twist and turn in the build-up to launch day, I’ve seen people from every walk of life wade into the fray. I’ve seen frothing mouth-breathing basement dwellers argue the toss about Microsoft’s decision to use embedded SRAM — but I’ve also seen core gamers ask which console will be better for playing Battlefield 4, and casual gamers asking which console will make the best living room media center. The fact is, the capabilities of the Xbox One and PS4 — and more importantly, the lack thereof — will play a key role in global media consumption for the better part of a decade. It is thus very important to analyze both consoles, and to discuss (often heatedly) which features will have the biggest and/or most significant impact. Considering the huge first-week sales enjoyed by both consoles (double that of the previous generation), the impact of the PS4 and Xbox One might turn out to be even larger than expected, too.

The Xbox One, in its original form, was a brave reimagining of the living room of tomorrow. Microsoft had gone back to the drawing board and delivered a console that was very different from the Xbox 360 and PS3. As it turned out, though, the media and consumers thought the Xbox One was too different — that mandatory Kinect and an always-on internet connection was simply too divergent from society’s archetypal concept of a game console. This is a shame, because the original vision of the Xbox One, though very different from previous consoles, had a lot of cool functionality — and more importantly, a lot of potential — that has now been stripped out. The final, launch-day version of the Xbox One is basically the Xbox 360 but with the ability to side-by-side TV programs and games/apps — neat, but hardly revolutionary.

Sony, on the other hand, had decided from the outset that its eighth-generation console would be more of a gradual evolution (devolution?), with a strict focus on games and an actual reduction of features when compared to the PS3. In Sony’s own words, it switched from the PS3’s highly customized hardware architecture to x86 and a known GPU on the PS4 so that developers would have an easier time creating kick-ass games. For some unknown reason, though, many other features that were much loved by PS3 users, such as local media playback and capturing photos/videos with the PS Camera, fell by the wayside.

Homogeneous

The end result, despite wildly different conceptions, is two consoles that are shockingly similar in their functionality and capabilities. You could argue that the Xbox One’s HDMI input and (eventual) app ecosystem give the console more potential for future awesomeness, or that the PS4’s 50%-larger GPU will eventually result in superior games, but it’s splitting hairs. At best you might say that the Xbox One is marginally better than the PS4 for watching TV, and vice versa for games — but even then, we wouldn’t be surprised if Microsoft’s decision to go with ESRAM instead of more GPU cores results in both consoles posting very similar game performance. When everything’s tallied up, this actually leaves Microsoft’s console with a slight edge over the PS4 — hardware-wise, except for the HDMI input, both consoles are functionally identical.

We used to do really cool things with game consoles, like using Kinect to remotely pet a cat with a robot.

The problem with homogeneity is that, while it’s fantastic for developers (porting games between the two x86 consoles and the PC will be very easy), it’s awful for progress. The reason the previous generation of the Console War was so fruitful was that the consoles were incredibly different to begin with, resulting in a huge variety of games, gameplay, and other non-game uses (media streaming, Kinect hacks, Linux on the PS3, etc.) As the seventh generation matured and the delta between the consoles narrowed, as did developer creativity. Really, in the past year, there has been very little in the way of excitement or boundary pushing on the PS3 and Xbox 360, and I’m worried that this trend will continue into the PS4 and Xbox One. Microsoft had the opportunity to differentiate the consoles with mandatory Kinect and the always-on internet connectivity requirement, but squandered it to appease the baying hordes.

We are now looking down the barrel at a further five to 10 years of gaming that is fundamentally unchanged from the last seven. Games will be prettier in accordance with the new consoles’ beefier hardware, and there are still a few new features that might crystalize into new types of games and gameplay, but right now it’s not looking good — right now, it looks like the eighth chapter of the Console War will conclude with millions of people buying consoles that are ultimately just dumb, crippled PCs capable of playing the latest sequel from EA or Activision and not much else.

Tagged In

Last-gen may have been different from the start, but in the end they were very similar. Aside from some internal specs which were very different, and most of the variety was taken away form both as time went on. The only unique gameplay came from neither Sony or MS, but from Nintendo. Also let’s not forget how the original OS’s of last-gen were. They very much evolved from what they started out as. The same will happen with this gen. Actually I feel this gen will separate themselves as time go on, unlike how last-gen’s slowly came together. Only time will tell.

DarthDiggler

@toddraynerart

The only unique gameplay came from neither Sony or MS, but from Nintendo

It all really depends on how you define unique gameplay. Dedicated fans of LittleBigPlanet, ModNation Racers, Fat Princess or Heavy Rain on PS3 may have a different opinion. Each of those provided unique gameplay.

Also let’s not forget how the original OS’s of last-gen were. They very much evolved from what they started out as. The same will happen with
this gen.

We are in 100% agreement about the evolution that is bound to come for both PS4 and XBONE.

Asim Ramay

Just to note before I start, I live in Australia as such
all prices listed will be in AUD, for consoles Australia is ~ 15 % more
expensive and for computers Australia is ~ 25% more expensive, also I apologize
for this being long, but I prefer to write everything in 1 post rather than
reply to multiple people.

@toddraynerart:disqus

I disagree that PS 4 or Xbox One/ PS3 OR
Xbox360 as a piece of hardware were really that different yes in both gens PS
had more ‘Power’ however what essentially differentiates consoles from PCs and
from other consoles is the ‘Exclusive’ Games consoles have, innovative inputs
and sometimes size (note PS / Xbox controllers don’t count as you can use them
with your computer), why? :

– All general release games on Consoles (especially now in current
gen where they use similar APU’s) will be coded with generally lower res and
graphics (as what happened last gen PS 3 vs Xbox 360) at least in the first year
meaning on both consoles the game will be very similar (i.e. No optimization,
games made with backward compatibility in mind for older gen consoles and then
ported etc)

– Within 6 month consoles become obsolete as a piece of hardware in
terms of RAW processing power and are non-upgradable leading to developers sacrificing
things in the console version’s both on Xbox 360 and PS4 2 years from release (whereas
with a PC you can use the difference in game prices to upgrade your graphics
card now and then for the Low End , and just leave the High End one)

– Optimal time therefore for consoles is 1 – 2 years after release
where you are getting maximum out of your console

– The difference between consoles has become less and less in
recent years since there are fewer exclusives due to companies realizing they
lose revenue by locking themselves to a single platform

This being said there are differences
between PS4 and Xbox One but they are relatively minor unless there is an
exclusive you want.

@ The Computer Vs Console Discussion in general

First cost of technology in Australia Explained + my buying habits:
Basic Edition Xbox One & PS 4 = $600
Average spent on games in 4 years (if purchased 1 year
later when price drops):
AAA = $80+ per games
others = $50+ per game
What I spent on console games over 4 years with my
brothers = $1530 for ~ 23 games ($66.52 per game/ $382.50 per year not
including Multiplayer subs)
Expected Cost after 4 years of owning a console = $2130

Low end computer including 22” LED monitor = $834
(that has same Graphics throughput as a PS4 and more RAW processing power)
High end computer Including 24” Gaming LED monitor = $1874
(usually able to play high end games at just above 30 FPS at 1080 HD Resolution
with max settings 4 years from purchase depending on time of purchase, but can 100%
play all other games at full settings for next year @ 60 + FPS and can Actually
play Games like metro 2033/dirt 3 above 30 FPS @ 4k / Max Settings unlike Consoles
or Low End PCs)
What I spent on Computer games over 4 years by myself = $600
for ~370 games ($1.62 per game/ $150 per year), Note steam was used for 95 % of
purchases and most games were bought during sales / 1 year after release for
most AAA titles
Expected Cost after 4 years of owning a Low/High End PC =
$ 1434/2474

Objectively really consider what a console
is, it is essentially an optimized low end computer, consoles definitely had a
place and still do have a place but more so then ever consoles are about
getting together with 1 to 3 friends and gaming together and are otherwise not
worth the cost if you play by yourself most of the time or play with friends
over the net with VOIP.

In addition consider these things:

– If you don’t have a TV the low end computer is actually cheaper
@ $834 since it comes included with screen and everything or only 99$ more
expensive ($699) if you plug it into your TV instead of buying a monitor (Note
— the low end PCs specs are similar to the PS4’s)

– Computer screens are denser per inch then TV’s and the panels
are of higher quality in terms of picture reproduction then TV’s unless the TV
is $1500 + in which case they are Comparable unless you have a $400 + computer
screen in which case you would be hard pressed to find a better panel to game
on especially if it’s a TV ( the reason TV’s are expensive is due to the size
of the screen then quality of the panel to reproduce pictures at that size in
HD and high quality TV tuner)

– Computers do more than one thing they can be used to study,
game, program, stream anything, watch TV over internet on any service, edit pictures/videos
the list goes on, all consoles can do is game, surf the web and playback
video/pictures, and watch TV over limited services, stream games

– Computer games are backwards compatible for nearly through all
your upgrades /replacement computers, and I still have games I bought in 2002 and
games that were published in the 90’s and earlier including Doom, StarCraft, Warcraft,
Unreal Tournament etc, though you might have to tinker with some old games
before they work correctly on windows 7/8.

– You usually don’t have the console you had as a kid or 2
generations ago, due to lack of use, space, thinking you will never play those
olds games again etc

Comparing Specs of the two consoles and the
two computers I priced above I did this when I found out about the price and
specs of the consoles so some things might of varied since then (though unlikely):

I really can’t understand why your post was down voted. It was completely honest, and very thorough. You used facts without showing any bias. I guess we can chalk it up to a console fanboys buyers remorse.

jznlv

What change in games are you looking for? I don’t want to talk and use motion controls very often if at all, give me a good controller , a.great story , and great gameplay and I’m happy. Gimmicks don’t make games fun. I loved first zelda when I was 10 , and still love it now. Not much has changed besides graphics/sounds and newer controllers. Games for the most part will have the same basic formula. VR is the only “New” direction to go , and that seems to be headed our way.

IKROWNI

Only heading our way in form of PC though not consoles.they are far to underpowered for vr

Techutante

I agree with you in theory, however there’s not really any barriers to MS or Sony allowing for an oculus rift to be hooked to them. It would just take a few driver upgrades.

IKROWNI

Its already been stated that VR will not work with consoles. You need to have 1080p or higher and over 100fps for it to work as intended. If these consoles create VR setups it will be just awful, but hey the consoles are awful and millions bought them right? Sony is working on what theory call vr which is just a screen projected at a 10′ throw in a headset. This is trash and been done already. Oculus is looking to literally change the way games are played. Consoles shifted from 720p to 900p and call it revolutionary. VR will really shine when we get 4k @ over 100fps. Which cant even be done on PC yet I doubt some olkd 2007 hardware would get you there, but good luck with that.

A. It has been stated numerous times that later games for the systems will run in 1080p. (At least for the PS4)

B. I own a proto-oculus dev kit. Currently it runs more or less just fine in 800×600 with really shitty resolution. It could be easily adapted to run on a console. The resolution wouldn’t be as nice, but like all things console, that’s the price you pay for not shelling out the extra couple hundred for a real PC. I mostly agree with you, I’m just saying they could Hodge-podge it to work.

IKROWNI

Yes but as I said it would be a bad move because it will turn people off from VR which is what is going to bring droves of people to PC. Maybe that’s what there end game will be. Crappy vr so people think it will be just as bad on pc

RobOnline

I’m not saying your wrong. I reply to you purely because your comment made me I Google “PS4 Oculus” and the first hit was an article on Joystick which stated quite clearly it wont come to the Xbox one or Ps4.

However it said this: “There is currently a single model of the device planned for consumers that will be compatible with Android devices and PCs”

Now I may be wrong here, or misunderstanding the quote. But surely the PS4 and Xbox One are more capable decvices than any Android device

Its basically for a wireless experience, streaming from your pc is what I was thinking android was being mixed in for. Or maybe for like little arcade style games. I saw a tablet the other day running bf4 1080p 60fps which neither console can do. So who knows what’s planned but whatever it is it will not be going to consoles cause you need over 100fps in vr

RobOnline

Thanks for the reply.
Wow what kind of tablet was that? Sounds like an impressive tablet

jay

Microsoft had the right idea, but most US neighborhoods are not prepared for high bandwidth requirements of digital delivery of content.

If they partner with (or become) an ISP provider, and start offering 200/100 mbps packages at reasonable prices, then their vision could have worked, but right here and now, it was just too much.

Also, Microsoft has not patented the idea of family sharing, digital content delivery, always on, etc. Sony can do it as well, these decisions were the product of the limitations of the current infrastructure.

>The reason the previous generation of the Console War was so fruitful was that the consoles were incredibly different to begin with, resulting in a huge variety of games, gameplay, and other non-game uses (media streaming, Kinect hacks, Linux on the PS3, etc.)

Seriously?
Are you saying different architectures of PS3 and Xbox360 led to “huge vareity of games”? The only difference between PS3 and Xbox360 was Kinect and Move/Eye, and games for these were just tech demos, or novelty items. Nothing to write about.
The reason WiiU has been unsuccessful, even with being “incredibly different”, is that, Wii novelty has wore off, and there aren’t many games available for it.

Variety comes from imagination and creativity, motion controls can only work so much, but in the end most gamers want to sit down and enjoy the games.

Just another article to bring in hits, pathetic.

IKROWNI

The family share plan is available through steam allowing sharing to 10 friends/family and no need to lock down to the samebox one or the PS whore.

jay

Three people arguing about Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, and Hyudnai Sonata, and you come in and tell them that your Private Jet is better than their cars.

Sigh.

IKROWNI

I know people are dumb they would choose to pay for those three turds instead of grabbing the free jet.

A. J.

Actually, the original X1 plan did NOT require much bandwidth. Games would still be sold in stores. However, each game would come with an install disc and a license key. The install disc would be used just for speed and to save network resources. It would be a digital license, and you would not actually need the disc. It would just be for convenience, but you would not need it in the drive to play the game.

The original plan also required the X1 to check-in once every 24 hours. This should have been reduced to something more manageable like 3 or 7 days. In addition, they should have released an offline mode to lock games to a console until it came back online. This would allow people to travel, or to allow the military to play. With those two tweaks, things would have been much better.

IKROWNI

Yea there’s an idea Microsoft become your own ISP for the sake of Xbox. You know that would be a great idea while your investors are wanting the plug pulled on Xbox, you should invest billions to make the Xbox slightly more compatible. Just so you can sell Xbox within a year. If only they would have hired jay. But alas they did not so its still just a crummy 720 pastgen rehash. They saw Activision rehash call of duty 20x so they figured hell let’s give the people last gen gaming they will tho crazy over it. You like idiots millions flocked in to buy them… Bahh bahhh sheep.

Dozerman

Unsucessful? The Wii-U is the number one console on the planet right now. You may want to reconsider your words.

JD Rahman

Whoever wrote that poem, needs to give it up. Poetry is not for you…
:)

Registeredwithem

Parody of Romeo and Juliet, dude. That Shakespeare was an awful writer.

greybirdtoo

Dude, just because you don’t get him doesn’t mean he was an awful writer. An awful writer wouldn’t have anything available now, it would have disappeared because it wouldn’t have been worth printing back when paper and ink were so much more expensive.

Wussupi83

This article makes a great point. I don’t see these consoles taking gaming anywhere new. I don’t necessarily think they have to because as many people who owned consoles throughout the years who suddenly find themselves bored, there’s the next young generation who never played through the first 10 iterations of call of duty, so it’s all new to them. But again, I agree with the article that it still hurts the industry.

Unfortunately, these consoles control much of the gaming industry and the money they generate drives and steers the car so to speak.

However, just like the WII came out of nowhere, we are seeing new things like OCULUS and SteamOS, which looks like is going to be more creative than anyone anticipated. If these manage to go ‘viral’, they might be the best hope for the industry continuing to innovate and grow.

I’ve been saying something like this would happen for a while now and I’m not surprised that it’s coming to fruition. The consoles keep on moving further toward being just dumbed down, highly controlled PCs. This is the first console generation where I’m not buying one. PC graphics will move beyond what these new consoles are capable of quite quickly I’m sure, and with other exciting things like Occulus Rift in the horizon I see no reason to own a console.

IKROWNI

PC already passed the next gen consoles up a few years ago, just weren’t any games developed to show it off because they waited for the consoles to capitalize on it. And this is my first time not buying a console as well, my son wanted one also he’s only 10 but he wants a PC now after seeing comparisons and the new tech that will really feel like next gen.

Techutante

Plus if you buy him a PC, you can get in on the Christmas Steam Sale, and he can own like a dozen games for 3-5 dollars each that are still 50+ on either of the current gen consoles.

IKROWNI

Haha I started his own steam account couple weeks ago so he already got about 30 games he picked out over the autumn sale. Paid about $40 for them all and just grabbed 6 more with the humble bundle. So for $45 he got 36 games. And he can share them with his friends. I still think its funny that these parents will be showing off the consoles they got there kids for Christmas while my 10 year old is getting geared up for oculus with me. Needless to say I’m sure all of his friends and mine will be having a blast using real next gen gaming. All while saving thousands over consoles.

Techutante

That’s how you do it. Hundreds of hours of gaming for less than the cost of one “next gen” console game. Plus it’s more ergonomic if you get him a proper desk and chair, etc. I remember when my mom took me to a used bookstore for the first time, and i realized that for the price of one retail hardcover I could buy 30 used paperbacks. Life changing!

IKROWNI

Yep, exactly! Hit me up on steam same name I have here. Lol look at that friending people and playing with friends is just as easy on steam as it is on console. Its amazing! Revolutionary technology!

RobOnline

I just wonder if these great offers on steam will be come less and less when the produce their own hardware and it becomes a more mainstream method of purchasing games.

standard

I genuinely hesitated after seeing Sebastian wrote this…

IKROWNI

Weird seeing the truth about how awful consoles really are being posted in an article here on ET

standard

Having now read the article, I’m glad to see a more level headed Sebastian.

DarthDiggler

@Sebastian Anthony

After a protracted battle that lasted seven years and resulted in what can best be described as a dull stalemate

I hadn’t finished reading the article yet but this line really irked me. While the sales numbers for PS3 and X360 are close, calling this a dull stalemate doesn’t seem to jive with the facts and provides a very limited scope of what happened last generation.

The PS3 is beginning to eclipse the X360 sales, which is quite a milestone for PS3 considering MS had a year head start with the X360. The pricing alignments too is a milestone as the PS3 was reportedly more expensive to manufacturer. Sales milestones aside though, the neck and neck competition between Microsoft and Sony had granted us many high quality games and a treasure trove of features that were not really available on each system day 1.

I wouldn’t classify that as dull at all.

Phobos

Those were some very good points. I don’t know why they try to point out if the ps4 or XO will have a shorter lifespan than last gen, too early to tell if they will fail.

DarthDiggler

@disqus_kIbCg3m60Y:disqus

Who mentioned the lifespans? I for one wouldn’t mind if Sony / MS released slightly updated versions of their units in 2-3 years, if Verizon can get peeps to buy a phone every 2-3 years there is no reason the console manufacturers can’t replicate that.

The only problem is that may cause issues as not having a single spec for developers. There could potentially be games that only work with the newer unit. It’s a double edged sword.

Phobos

Like you said it’s a double edged sword, plus I wouldn’t want to ditch a console 2-3yrs like a smartphone for only slightly new features.

Joel Hruska

I think now we finally have some systems capable of realizing large visions and ambitions.

If current trends continue, by 2020, games will be indistinguishable from real life, take five days to download and install, and last 45 minutes.

Techutante

And for some reason, the Netcode will still be bad and you’ll get shot around a corner repeatedly because someone is playing on Dial-up from Alaska.

Heath Parsons

Don’t act like the XBox One didn’t have a huge amount of problems to start. People were not comfortable with a device that’s always on, or video games only one person could use (that’s the joy of video gaming with a console, you can share games). Also DLC is a huge problem now because the packs are smaller and cost more. This is why I quit buying consoles. If I want a device, I don’t want it to connect to twitter or facebook, but nope. But I will get one good thing out, the games are getting more detailed and the things you can do in game are insurmountably numerous which makes for a great time, especially in RPGs.

IKROWNI

You can share your entire library of games with up to 10 people on steam. And you can also buy 4 packs of games to get even bigger discounts on the game just find three friends to chip in. Plus tons of games are on sale with steam giving 85% off on tons of AAA games. So no consoles still have no edge of PC.

DarthDiggler

@ikrowni:disqus

You can share your entire library of games with up to 10 people on steam.

How well is Capcom represented on Steam? I know Capcom was not happy with PSN’s 5 person game share feature which is why it was reduced to 2 persons.

These are great features, but suggesting that consoles don’t compete here is laughable, PS+ certainly competes with game deals and Microsoft is following suit too.

Competition is a great thing, given the prevalence of console gaming vs. Steam I’d suggest developers have a bigger edge of a larger audience if they release on consoles as well as Steam. Steam is a great service but they don’t nearly have the user base that PSN and XBL enjoy.

DarthDiggler

@heathparsons:disqus

Also DLC is a huge problem now because the packs are smaller and cost more.

I am kind of sick to death of these blanket accusations of DLC just being some sort of cash in for developers. Sure some DLC is worked on while the game is finishing up and going gold (IE: BF4 China Rising).

DLC helps to keep revenue streaming into the studio and it helps to keep the product relevant on the store shelf. This keeps developers, artists and programmers employed and not subject to the whims of the used market value.

Your accusation is completely general, exactly WHO’s DLC is a problem because it is more expensive and contains less content?

The fact is you can point to various games that have done DLC right for the most part, some have been less than stellar, but very few non-cosmetic add-ons have been a complete waste of money. Borderlands 2’s season pass was so successful they had given more DLC then was promised. Battlefield has a complete schedule of DLC lots of little stuff in between all the big stuff, it’s great seeing the schedule and when the stuff rolls out too.

This is why I quit buying consoles. If I want a device, I don’t want it to connect to twitter or facebook, but nope.

What console forces you to connect to Facebook or Twitter? As far as I know these features are optional.

Robert Berwick

Always-On does not make games better no matter how you spin it. The cons definitely outweighed the pros of that setup and after all, the architecture of the consoles have nothing to do with how the developers show their creativity (or as you might also have said, a lack thereof).

If gamers want better experiences, it should probably start with letting the developers know that a rehash of a 5 year old game engine with the same boring gameplay simply won’t cut it anymore. Voting with your wallet is the only way to change that.

Daydreamer

Regarding paragraph 2, sentence 3 . . . .

I would love to see the list of names of people who wandered into the console war concerned the next video game system would make a good ‘living room media center.’ As far as I know, no one on the planet was concerned about having a ‘media center device’. All we wanted was a video game system that did one thing really well, play video games.

I don’t mean to sound anti-MS. In fact I own both the XB1 and PS4 and cannot tell a difference in graphics. Both machines are great. Simply responding to the asinine comment made in the article.

Techutante

Microsoft has had a wet dream about “media centers” for like a decade. Everything they do is about being your “all in one entertainment solution”. Honestly, I don’t consume media on my TV anymore. I don’t even own a TV. I play console games on my Projector sometimes (Just a PS3, which I’ve barely turned on.) but I’ve been a dedicated PC gamer since sometime after the console generation 2x back. (Ps2, Xbox)

IKROWNI

I would love to see the list of names of people who wandered into the console war thinking they were getting next gen out of them.

DarthDiggler

Oh i think I remember you. You are PC elitist guy. Don’t you guys have your own article threads and forums to comment on? With how cheap and awesome PC gaming is — how do you tear yourself away to comment on consoles? :)

That being said, I got my PS4 and it is definitely next gen. I even had one of my next gen doubters come by to check out Battlefield 4, looks like he will be getting a PS4 instead of a new PC.

IKROWNI

What a terrible friend you are. Hopefully that poor guy gets a chance to see a proper gaming PC in action before he hastily purchases something that he could have gotten better if only that one “friend” hadn’t shown how crappy his PS whore was.

And its actually very easy to tear away and make comments to the uninformed sheeple, because whether you know it or not PC has had the ability to multitask in millions of ways while you are marveling over that ability on your locked down console.

Most of the shit you people are whoring yourself out for has benn around with much better functionality than the consoles. And noooooo you can blame the sheep who fall in suit I mean holy hell after a couple billion dollars in advertising old hardware as the greatest thing to ever come to life is shoveled down your throat and flashed before yours eyes every 5 seconds for an entire year. Its hard to show people how absurd it sounds to be entering 4k generation and having a console stuck barely scraping out 1080p @ 60fps for ten more years. Or to have 1080p VR with full motion head tracking running over 100 fps only a few months away and thinking anyone is gonna give two squirts about a console. So why throw away the $400-$500 gearing up for 720p-barely 1080p when you could sink it to a PC or steam machine and have all of the good stuff coming very soon.

IKROWNI- I was reading your comments between Darth Diggler, and I was taking a non-bias approach to both of your two opinions. Both of you seem well-spoken and intelligent, with a bias of course. But you completely lost my respect when you starting swearing. If you want people to respect your opinion, you must be respectful in yours. There is no need for such base tactics. If you think you are so enlightened, then please, act like it.

Angel Ham

This generation is going to about $60 games built around microtransactions.

Techutante

#^$% microtransactions.

James Tolson

i believe this is the last generation of consoles, because gone is the dedicated wonder hardware and romance game consoles once had, instead we have just consumer e waste small form factor pc with an overbloated api OS, games cannot ever be original, different.. made in a way that take dedicated advantage of host hardware.. instead we have the same game engines running the same churned out call of duty style crap year upon year.. games on these consoles will look the same next year as they do now and the year after that.. gone are the days of the sega’s and nintendo’s and original playstations with close to metal hardware programming that makes games unique and interesting, nope all we got now is drm microtransacting DLC spamming mega corporations hell bent on scamming every penny off mass Ignorant consumerism, every game franchise is getting dumber and dumber to the point of unplayability.. i miss the 80’s and 90’s where games required you to have a brain to play :-)

IKROWNI

Your only missing PC brotha join the master race there’s a reason they are called that. Funny thing is console fanboys think its a way to discredit us. But then console fanboys are usually backwards with there thinking.

Jeff Watts

“After a protracted battle that lasted seven years and resulted in what can best be described as a dull stalemate,”

I find that a very poor analysis. A more realistic statement is that after seven years both MS and Sony ended up with highly capable, popular and profitable consoles.

This generation both companies decided to go with slightly less capable machines in order to avoid the substantial early losses both companies suffered with the last generation. As such, I suspect, despite the PR talk, that both of these consoles will have a shorter life span than the last generation. Personally, I prefer the tradeoff of slightly less state of the art hardware, but a quicker model cycle. I really expect this console generation to be closer to 5 years than 10 years.

IKROWNI

Well first off the HD 7850 is not exactly new state of the art hardware buddy. Its actually years old. Basically just bumped up a tad and built into the CPU. The new huwai phones coming December 16th have octacore apu’s clocked faster than the consoles are. So you want a nextgen console just look to your phone for underpowered gaming, hey at least its mobile right? Now if only that phone could produce as much advertising and over speculation about its capabilities to be a gaming machine.

Winston_from_the_Ministry

You’ve heard casual gamers ask which will make the best media center? Really?

Basically just follow those steps and it unlocks the ability to play 360 games on your Xbox one. If Microsoft were good people they would have just included the feature. Not leave it to elite hackers to enable this. What a crummy company for locking that ability. Anyways hopes this works so you can really stick it to the man. What a dumb company for not locking this security loophole that allows you to go into devmode like this

As you can see in the edited-for-your-safety image above, some
anonymous “pranksters” have been sharing the following information
dubiously trying to teach Xbox One owners how to unlock backwards
compatibility for Xbox 360 games as a means to deliberately get people
to accidentally brick their consoles. It is the equivalent of telling
somebody on a PC to fix their problem by deleting (AGAIN, DON’T DO THIS!) System32, another infamous prank that has been pulled in the past.

The image has been speculated to start on 4chan and has been spreading since then to forums like NeoGAF.
It immediately makes you wonder if Microsoft thought it through when
they decided to make every Xbox One unit a potential dev kit when they
announced their ID@Xbox indie program back at gamescom in August. Now anyone who makes a purchase has easy access to ruining their console.

Unless you are an official ID partner and have agreed-upon access to
the dev-kit functionality, it is best to ignore messing around in that
part of the Xbox One system altogether. $499 USD is a lot of money to
throw down the drain, especially when you void your warranty doing so to
leave you no other options.

IKROWNI

Damnit chojin if they are dumb enough to buy an Xbox one without doing any research further than looking at billions of advertisements in there face every day then they are dumb enough to brick there consoles by doing something as dumb as deleting system32.

What just did chojin was put a sign on here warning the idiots of society to not do dumb shit. This is why there are problems in this world to many safety signs, not enough people using there brains for themselves.

If I posted that you can get free gas for your lawnmower by putting your hand in the spinning blades, and someone is dumb enough to believe do you not believe that the person deserves to have there hand cut off?

Or are you just going to tell me its better that people be fully informed of everything they are getting with there actions? Because if that’s the case then there is the reason I post so frequently. To educate the uneducated about how stupid purchasing a console is.

Consoles ruin gaming for everyone. Games have to be developed for the limited hardware that comes in these consoles so everyone on PC has to spend a year fixing the games with mods just so we can get the most out of the game, the way it should look.

I’m tired of PC being held back because of these vtech consoles. It really sucks.

Joel Hruska

So you posted deliberately false information in an attempt to lead people into breaking their shit?

IKROWNI

Well not exactly, when I first saw it I thought it was real at first cause that’s how the console manufacturers would act. You know strip away stuff for no reason. Then after chojin posted I didn’t exactly rush to fix it. So I wouldn’t sit there acting like I deliberately attempted to say otage anyone’s consoles. I would rather see people go pour it back to GameStop so that they could have a good start at a real next gen system.

Joel Hruska

GameStop doesn’t *give* refunds. An opened system is exchanged for an identical system, no exceptions. They only give returns on unopened merchandise.

Please remove your initial post. There’s no reason to spread false information in a situation like this. You’re free to hate consoles as much as you want, and to argue for the superiority of PCs, but please don’t extend that to spreading rumors we know aren’t true.

Gerry Abella

Well said, Joel.

Phobos

Blame the game not the player.

Joel Hruska

You cannot play Xbox 360 games on the Xbox One.

There are two ways to ensure backwards compatibility — software and hardware. The Xbox One does not contain a hardware version of the Xbox 360’s chips.

It also does not contain the extensive software emulation engine that would be required to load and play games on the system.

IKROWNI

They used the Xbox one through emulation during the reveal. They were showing everyone how well a PC plays games at 1080p @ 60fps and saying it was xbone. Scumbags I know.

Gerry Abella

IKROWNI- I retract my previous statement I just posted about you being well-spoken and intelligent. You are trash, scum of the earth. I cannot believe you posted those instructions in this thread. Deliberately, with malicious intent. You got butt-hurt because people don’t want to hear your PC elitist attitude. You need to take a step back and think about why you would post instructions to get people to waste $500. If you are so concerned with how much games cost and are really trying to get people to save money, why would you do that?

Michael Cline

This is why I have an Oculus Rift dev kit; even with a crappy 720p screen and a lack of positional tracking, at least it’s not just the same old “use this stick to move a character on a screen and use this button to hit things” that we’ve had since the N64. And the consumer version is going to have a 1080p (possibly 2k) screen and positional tracking. This’ll be the last generation of traditional gaming consoles.

IKROWNI

Next gen gaming on PC that is coming in 2014 is going to be crazy badass. I can hardly wait. But don’t worry consoles I’m sure the ps7 and the Xbox three might have 720p VR and its only like 20 more years till those consoles come out.

Oculus is already working on a way to run the rift using android, but its not possible on the next gen consoles. So basically there you have it. Android can run it but your consoles can’t. Hahahaha

VirtualMark

Personally I’d prefer it if the consoles were more similar. I’d like to be able to play cross platform gaming online, such as Battlefield, COD etc.

Vt

We all now that PC’s are more powerfull and ahead of consoles, all those nvidia gtx 7 series… What somewhat drives me toword consoles is that setup on the tv, easy made just for playing simple games and that nostalgia from PS1, looking at that neat PS4 design, worth it when playing with friends(same room). Too bad nowadays consoles turned into money grabing snakes with those subscriptions( like 60 a game wouldnt cover it?) they limit more then previous consoles, even if you afford it you start to feel chipped and limited! :).
Another problem is the game titles, pc games like men of war and better sequels( full strategy, full 3D destructive map, modeled realistic units, armor, fuel, penetration chances, kinetic energy, angles, distance ect..) I havent seen a game like that on consoles, they just have dumb counter strike type easy thrill shooters, and if one game like that ends up on console, they mod down so much it becomes a different on. Although some titles have decent graphics enough to enjoy without the max out pc, those consoles will go like 2,3 years. As we can see there are some pluses and minuses like everywhere.

meddle0ne

The PS4 has turned out to be a big disappointment. Just more of the same.

Ray C

I don’t buy this idea that the casual user is into this whole “console war” thing like hardcore games and blog readers. There might be more interest from them, but not in extremely big numbers. As for console gaming no longer pushing the envelope, that is something that will come again. I’m guessing the article is saying making the consoles basically small PCs began the decline of consoles, but how do we know they could have created these things with specialized hardware and still been cost-effective?

Ray C

I don’t buy this idea that the casual user is into this whole “console war” thing like hardcore games and blog readers. There might be more interest from them, but not in extremely big numbers. As for console gaming no longer pushing the envelope, that is something that will come again. I’m guessing the article is saying making the consoles basically small PCs began the decline of consoles, but how do we know they could have created these things with specialized hardware and still been cost-effective?

Johnny

I find this omission fascinating: Microsoft’s decision to go with ESRAM instead of more GPU cores results in both consoles posting very similar game performance. When everything’s tallied up, this actually leaves Microsoft’s console with a slight edge over the PS4 — hardware-wise, except for the HDMI input, both consoles are functionally identical.
Is the truth finally coming to light? Hahaha fanboys eat crow there really is no power difference in between them.

Johnny

I find this omission fascinating: Microsoft’s decision to go with ESRAM instead of more GPU cores results in both consoles posting very similar game performance. When everything’s tallied up, this actually leaves Microsoft’s console with a slight edge over the PS4 — hardware-wise, except for the HDMI input, both consoles are functionally identical.
Is the truth finally coming to light? Hahaha fanboys eat crow there really is no power difference in between them.

Mountainjoy

Dell will have a 4k 28inch monitor for under a grand out early next year, for those with $2000 to spend true next gen will have arrived, not these sad barely 1080p consoles.

IKROWNI

Actually you could grab a 55″ seiki 4k uhdtv for under $1000 right now.

Mountainjoy

Yeah I was looking at those, but it seems its capped at 30hz at 4k over hdmi. Or some such. Was reading some pretty poor reviews.

IKROWNI

Yea that’s about the only downfall though that’s a nice price for starting in 4k. But give it 1 year and you will see 4k everywhere. All of the resolution unaware can get cheap 1080p TVs to handle what there consoles can barely eek out. Meanwhile we will have brand name 4k TVs coming in taking the pricing that 1080 is running right now. So yea less than a year and 4k gaming will become a mainstream thing. VR will probably start hitting 4k within the next 2 years if I had to guess.

Boudou

The movement away from exotic hardware is a good thing. Architecturally, the XB1/PS4 have basically become PCs. Instead of expending resources and time on nuances in hardware, developers can completely focus on their creative vision.

And in the case of MS, they want developers to get creative with their Kinect. That is where MS wants developers to put that additional creativity.

Also, the ESRAM basically makes up for the lack of bandwidth that is in DDR3. The decision to go with a DDR3 + ESRAM over GDDR5 was always a cost saving measure not a performance one.

And even if the XB1 can approach parity in bandwidth with the PS4 as developers put more time into the ESRAM, the PS4 still has 50% GPU cores and 100% more ROPs. Sony’s thinking is that they want developers to use those extra Compute cores to add new effects, lighting, AI, etc.

As we’ve seen with DIgital Foundry comparisons, pretty much every multiplatform game has the PS4 running at better resolution and with more effects. These are real world game examples nothing theoretical. The hardware is similar in design, but there is some big differences in power.

rony kahana

This has been the most depressing thing I’ve read all day.

rony kahana

This has been the most depressing thing I’ve read all day.

convolution

It’s because they looked at the Wii-U’s attempt at diverging, and vowed not to make that mistake as well.

convolution

It’s because they looked at the Wii-U’s attempt at diverging, and vowed not to make that mistake as well.

Ryan

Assumptions Assumptions.. What it is it exactly you are imagining these new systems will be doing article writer? I mean you bash these new systems but offer no new ideas yourself. “Microsoft had the opportunity to differentiate the consoles with mandatory Kinect and the always-on internet connectivity requirement, but squandered it to appease the baying hordes.” Baying hordes? Really? lol… In case you didn’t notice, The entire world isn’t covered yet in always on, fast cheap internet access… so are you assuming this would change because of an xbox? Always on is fine IF and WHEN decent quality internet access is available affordably to ALL- not just the small few rich elites 1% of the world. When will the world have this? When companies like Comcast are no longer allowed and able to run a monopoly on it and continue bullying all of us into their little consumer bitches, we will have a chance at it… right now no way in hell will the barrier of greed ease up to allow it.

“We are now looking down the barrel at a further five to 10 years of gaming that is fundamentally unchanged from the last seven. Games will be prettier in accordance with the new consoles’ beefier hardware, and there are still a few new features that might crystalize into new types of games and gameplay, but right now it’s not looking good —”

It’s not looking good?! They just came out! Are you assuming that all the games are just going to suck now all of a sudden? I just don’t get the point of your rambling article other than to piss and moan and make exaggerated unfounded claims and half predictions that have no basis in reality. You are assuming a lot. And when you ASSUME, you make an ASS of U and ME. If I didn’t know any better after reading this, I could think that all of the games out there so far mainly suck and wanting anything even close to them now would be a horrible thing. I actually look forward to more of the same and then some… I think there have been some great games out for the consoles of last gens and getting more will be fine with me. Got to take the good with the bad. I don’t know what kind of consoles you were expecting as far as evolution -maybe one that makes coffee for you too?

Ryan

Assumptions Assumptions.. What it is it exactly you are imagining these new systems will be doing article writer? I mean you bash these new systems but offer no new ideas yourself. “Microsoft had the opportunity to differentiate the consoles with mandatory Kinect and the always-on internet connectivity requirement, but squandered it to appease the baying hordes.” Baying hordes? Really? lol… In case you didn’t notice, The entire world isn’t covered yet in always on, fast cheap internet access… so are you assuming this would change because of an xbox? Always on is fine IF and WHEN decent quality internet access is available affordably to ALL- not just the small few rich elites 1% of the world. When will the world have this? When companies like Comcast are no longer allowed and able to run a monopoly on it and continue bullying all of us into their little consumer bitches, we will have a chance at it… right now no way in hell will the barrier of greed ease up to allow it.

“We are now looking down the barrel at a further five to 10 years of gaming that is fundamentally unchanged from the last seven. Games will be prettier in accordance with the new consoles’ beefier hardware, and there are still a few new features that might crystalize into new types of games and gameplay, but right now it’s not looking good —”

It’s not looking good?! They just came out! Are you assuming that all the games are just going to suck now all of a sudden? I just don’t get the point of your rambling article other than to piss and moan and make exaggerated unfounded claims and half predictions that have no basis in reality. You are assuming a lot. And when you ASSUME, you make an ASS of U and ME. If I didn’t know any better after reading this, I could think that all of the games out there so far mainly suck and wanting anything even close to them now would be a horrible thing. I actually look forward to more of the same and then some… I think there have been some great games out for the consoles of last gens and getting more will be fine with me. Got to take the good with the bad. I don’t know what kind of consoles you were expecting as far as evolution -maybe one that makes coffee for you too?

FutureFox

I am not paying $500 for a handful of exclusives that will be released in 2-3 year time intervals. Might as well wait till the end-of-life and get them all at a significantly reduced price in the future. These long dev cycles will cannibalize their own profit model.

The rest of the games are third-parties which can be found across almost all platforms anyway. I’d say homogeneity in consoles gives PCers a bigger argument to simply own a gaming PC and ignore the few exclusives that come out for either PS4 for Xbox until as I said end-of-life of the console. Not worth the money.

No I’m not a PC gamer.

Daydreamer

So according to the author, ‘Sebastian Anthony’, the consoles are too much a like, thereby stifling creativity? The end of consoles?

I don’t think so. I think this is really good for creativity. Now developers can stop worrying about a lot of extra work that might have to go into porting a title over, and focus entirely on coming up with new IPs, and new ways to play those IPs. And the manufacturers can focus on what they need to focus on: services, apps, firmware/software improvements, and much, much more.

Sean Mesler

Xbox One’s “bravery” essentially stripped away the freedom to do what you want with what you buy physically. Good riddance. If you are unhappy with where the consoles are now, don’t let the door hit you on the way out.

IKROWNI

You all can down vote this all you would like but straight from the witcher 3 game devs.

“CD Projekt Red’s Marek Ziemak has stated in an interview that its latest title, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, is already pushing the new consoles to their absolute limits.”

I hope you people didn’t expect them to honestly use old out of date hardware, and x86 architecture with commonly already well known hardware and magically do something innovative. Now you wanna know why this pisses me off? Because now these devs will be at there max with what they can do and as always PC is screwed over since there focus will be on making the latest and greatest 720p content. My gawd I can not wait till these set top, set backs die off!!!

Sean Mesler

PC Master Race. Yep. Force everyone to play YOUR platform of choice. Guess what? If consoles “die off”, you will see less games because out of the 160 million people (PS3 and 360’s install base) only a very small percentage of those people will be buying a PC to game.

IKROWNI

FACT: steam has 30% more ACTIVE users than xbl has total accounts created. And yes if everyone was on PC in one community all allowed to play the same games and you can choose to use whatever controller/inputs you choose to. More games with better stories/graphics/inputs would be created since all of the devs would all be working towards one api. How are you understanding that as a bad thing? The consoles are already pushed to there ABSOLUTE limits and the haven’t been out a month. Your really ready to stick with that crap for another 10 years meanwhile the only bottleneck the PC has is consoles. Learn the truth stop drinking the console kool-aid.

Sean Mesler

Yeah and? Look at sales numbers. Show me ONE game that has come out on all 3 platforms at the same time that has sold more games on PC than on consoles.

I couldn’t care less if PC games are gimped. I get to sit on my couch, turn on my console and play a game. No settings, no applications needed, no upgrades, nothing. You like PC, OK. Good for you. Consoles aren’t going anywhere.

IKROWNI

You will soon have that exact same feature on steam. I can understand how someone as retarded as you would need your hand held at every turn though. People like you will be the reason it will take 20 more years to get what we could all enjoy now.

And wtf does it matter how many sales a game had on its first day? Are you gonna play with over a million in one day? Of course not so your only arguing for someone else’s wallet getting fatter. Why would someone on pc purchase on day 1when they can usually wait 2-3 weeks and grab it for a few bucks as appose to the $70 for the same crap.

Sean Mesler

And that’s the reason why consoles won’t go anywhere. These companies need the sales they get at top dollar and that’s within the first month.

I’m a day one kind of guy. I like to buy my games day one, beat em within two weeks, and sell them on eBay for $45 essentially only paying $20 (including tax). Selling is a nothing thing you can’t do on Steam – yet.

But hey, I’m retarded right? I mean I must be because I prefer the console infrastructure and ease of use to that of the PC. This Steam box you think is going to offer me the same luxury, it really isn’t. Just because it sits next to your TV doesn’t mean it’s doing away with all the headaches of PC gaming that turn me off.

I’m glad consoles exists because they suit my needs. And they piss off people like you, so that’s a bonus.

Sean Mesler

And that’s the reason why consoles won’t go anywhere. These companies need the sales they get at top dollar and that’s within the first month.

I’m a day one kind of guy. I like to buy my games day one, beat em within two weeks, and sell them on eBay for $45 essentially only paying $20 (including tax). Selling is a nothing thing you can’t do on Steam – yet.

But hey, I’m retarded right? I mean I must be because I prefer the console infrastructure and ease of use to that of the PC. This Steam box you think is going to offer me the same luxury, it really isn’t. Just because it sits next to your TV doesn’t mean it’s doing away with all the headaches of PC gaming that turn me off.

I’m glad consoles exists because they suit my needs. And they piss off people like you, so that’s a bonus.

dc

The real purpose of these machines is to play games. I hardly think that there will be a shortage of games due simply to the two systems being similar. I see more Indie development cross platform and that can only be a good thing. Looking to companies like EA for “innovation”, is akin to looking up personal injury lawyers in the phone book to find out about “honesty”.

dc

What I see happening with the transition to x86 is the likely hood that this will be the shortest lived generation of consoles ever. Although the names may well stay the same, I find it unlikely that at some point in two or three years that one or both companies won’t upgrade the chip. It’s just too easy and too tempting to toss a newer generation chip into a console after a year or two, especially given that the chips will remain 100 percent compatible with older games.

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